Speeding is believing: The bike with gears you can change by using your mind

By Daily Mail Reporter
UPDATED: 11:25 EST, 27 July 2011

The world's first bicycle with gears you can change simply by using your mind has been unveiled by scientists

The Toyota Prius Project Parlee PXP bike has a thought-controlled gearbox that works by responding to cues from the brain - and experts believe anyone will be able to master the technique.

Human/digital interface specialist Deeplocal built the one-of-a-kind helmet, which transfers brainwaves using wireless technology to a micro-control.

The 'neuron helmet' uses electrodes to pick up neuro-electrical activity to send signals to an electronic gear shifter mounted under the bike's seat.

Patrick Miller, creative engineer at Deeplocal said: 'The system has been built using a simple off-the-shelf brainwave reader and software to read the signals.

'It takes the rider a little bit of training but we're at the stage where people are successfully changing gears with their mind while riding.

'There is some special software to train people - while in a neutral state if you think "shift up" the helmet reads those patterns.

'So over time signals sent to the micro control when a user thinks "shift up" or "shift down"
become recognisable.

'It's an experiment at the moment, but once you have control you can do a lot of things like change gear during a journey based on things like speed and distance.'
Smartphone speedometer: The device measures the cyclist's heart rate and displays the mind-controlled manual gear-shifting